Chapter 159: A Great Opportunity

Is this an attempt to pluck the peach?

Behind Xi Ning stood Consort Chen. Was her vision really that narrow?

That my peaches—Zhao Hengyi's peaches—could catch the eye of the inner court's singularly favored Consort Chen, should I feel worried, or should I feel honored?

Even by Zhao Hengyi's own estimation, unless one was completely unaware of the true potential of the entire Yushuwan industrial system, its current scale alone could hardly be considered top-tier. Given the current strength of Consort Chen's faction, they shouldn't even have cared for it.

Furthermore, Zhao Hengyi had composed two supreme masterpieces of *ci* poetry, publicly beating the drums for Consort Chen in the scholarly community. No matter how one looked at it, he was branded as a sycophant devoted to Consort Chen. If even a man like him were to be backstabbed and wronged, who would dare to follow Consort Chen in the future?

The whole affair defied logic. No matter how arrogant and domineering Consort Chen's partisans might be, they would not—and should not—openly seize Zhao Hengyi's enterprise.

Apart from her ability to monopolize the sovereign's favor, Consort Chen's other methods were by no means mediocre.

Had it not been so, she could never have raised a new faction within the imperial court in such a short span of time!

For those who were useful, despite being a woman, Consort Chen was far more willing to invest heavily than the leaders of other factions—take the newly appointed Prefect of Jiangling, Zhang Qicheng, for instance.

Previously in Yonggu City, Zhao Hengyi's military achievements had been almost entirely erased, with the primary credit usurped by Consort Chen's own younger brother, Chen Yongzhong. Yet in reality, the title of Baron of Cangwu was already a fairly decent reward for someone like Zhao Hengyi, who possessed neither foundation nor background, and whose very origins could not withstand scrutiny.

Of course, a loss was a loss. But such was the official bureaucracy of the Great Yan Empire, and Zhao Hengyi was hardly the only one who suffered losses!

It was simply that because Yonggu City had held firm, and the defending garrison had decisively crushed the barbarian forces, Zhao Hengyi's contributions were too prominent, too dazzling to be concealed. That was why his grievance appeared particularly glaring.

However, Zhao Hengyi was no longer the man he used to be. A single *Qing Yu An: A Thousand Autumns*, while shaking the world with his fame, had thoroughly placed Consort Chen's ambition to become the sovereign of the inner court squarely on the table!

One must not underestimate the influence of an peerless masterpiece of poetry. Whenever scholars recited this *Qing Yu An*, they would invariably discuss its origins and background. As time fermented this influence, it would only grow larger. In an era where information dissemination was underdeveloped, people possessed remarkably long memories. In short, the longer the time passed, the greater Consort Chen's chances of seizing the empress's throne would increase!

Such a talent was one whom even Consort Chen, with her now-feathered wings, had to treat with utmost caution.

Not to mention the *Shui Diao Ge Tou: When Will the Bright Moon Appear*, which subsequently swept across the land from north to south. Already in the scholarly circles, enthusiastic fans had begun grandly hailing Zhao Hengyi as a "Master of Poetry," addressing him as the Teacher of Verse!

More fanatical admirers even claimed to be lowly disciples at Master Zhao's gate...

***

The unique social status of ancient scholars, combined with the civil official clique's tireless cultivation of the literati's importance over three hundred years, had fostered a wild and unrestrained disposition among most scholars and students.

Once Zhao Hengyi's two peerless masterpieces were released, these scholars pursued them with the fervor of modern-day fans. With a fan base large enough, the emergence of a few brainless fanatics was only natural.

Throughout the entire scholarly community, people everywhere were beating the drums for Zhao Hengyi. Under such circumstances, Zhao Hengyi—who had proactively branded himself with Consort Chen's mark—should logically have been extremely safe.

The smiling Xi Ning before him gave away no hint of his true thoughts. Had it not been for his identity as a court eunuch, which made it patently impossible for him to betray Consort Chen or leave the palace without authorization, Zhao Hengyi would have suspected that this fellow had been bought off by another faction in the court to deliberately provoke him and undermine Consort Chen's foundation!

"To be able to keep company with Your Honor day and night, and receive your constant instruction, is truly Zhao's good fortune!"

Zhao Hengyi's expression remained unchanged, his gaze flickering slightly. "I only wonder if Consort Chen has sent any commissions with Your Honor this time... Should there be any commands, how could Zhao dare disobey?"

First, he needed to find out Xi Ning's true purpose in coming to Dangyang County. If they genuinely intended to usurp Yushuwan's enterprise... well, mortals were always subject to three disasters and six misfortunes. A court eunuch coming from the capital falling ill due to failing to acclimate to the local environment was a common enough occurrence.

"The Baron is truly a man of great stature!"

Seeing that Zhao Hengyi was so cooperative, Xi Ning's face instantly lit up with joy as he raised a thumb in praise. "This servant was previously afraid that the Baron would misunderstand and had prepared a multitude of explanations, but I never expected that you... ah, it turns out this servant was measuring a gentleman's belly with the heart of a petty person!"

Xi Ning's joy was genuine and devoid of pretense.

In truth, the task Consort Chen had entrusted to him seemed somewhat unreliable even to Xi Ning himself!

Yet as a eunuch who had reached his current position solely by clinging tightly to Consort Chen's coattails, he had no other hopes or outlets aside from carrying out his duties with absolute loyalty.

Earlier, he had intentionally sounded out Zhao Hengyi, phrasing his words ambiguously to make Zhao believe his mission to Dangyang County was to seize Zhao's properties.

If Zhao Hengyi had flown into a rage or responded with cynical barbs, Xi Ning would have meekly backed down, admitted fault, and figured out a way to slip away from Jiangling Prefecture and return to the capital.

As for whether Consort Chen would settle accounts with Zhao Hengyi afterwards, that was not something a lowly eunuch like Xi Ning could fathom.

If Zhao Hengyi backed down and showed willingness to cooperate, Xi Ning would proactively clarify the misunderstanding and inform him that Consort Chen had no desire for his meager properties—that this servant had come looking for him purely because he coveted his skill in training troops!

Yet Zhao Hengyi had instead adopted an attitude of eager willingness, as if he would hand over everything he possessed on a silver platter at a single word from Xi Ning, solely to ensure Consort Chen's satisfaction!

***

This attitude was extraordinary!

Either he was a fool, or he was extremely crafty!

Having grown up deep within the imperial palace, Xi Ning did not fear a crafty Zhao Hengyi; what he feared was a foolish one.

Craftiness, to put it bluntly, meant intelligence and an understanding of the shifting tides. As long as Consort Chen remained in favor, he, Xi Ning, could live in perfect harmony with this Baron Zhao—who was smiling like a blooming flower right before him—and handle official business together.

That Xi Ning held such thoughts was simply because his understanding of Zhao Hengyi was still superficial. Had he been more familiar with him, given Xi Ning's intelligence, it would not have been hard to guess that this Baron Zhao had already developed the intent to kill!

"Baron, this servant's trip here has brought you a magnificent stroke of destiny!"

Right there in front of Dangyang County Magistrate Liu Rui, Xi Ning laid out the commission entrusted to him by Consort Chen in complete detail.

As it turned out, ever since the imperial court permitted local authorities to raise private militia regiments, many noble and prominent clans had responded enthusiastically, with quite a few families treating the formation of militias as an opportunity to carve out a future for their own younger generations!

And as Consort Chen's own younger brother, the currently favored profligate Chen Yongzhong naturally could not bear to be left out; he immediately demanded to raise a militia as well!

However, the imperial in-law's militia naturally had to be different from everyone else's. Zhao Hengyi of Jiangling Prefecture was a man of talent, who not only bore no resentment despite suffering injustices in Yonggu City, but instead demonstrated utter loyalty to Consort Chen, remaining a military genius at training troops. Therefore, he should be appointed as a deputy commander!

Furthermore, the soldiers of the Xuan Battalion in Yonggu City were fierce and stalwart veterans who had already defeated the barbarian armies. Most crucially, Chen Yongzhong had once commanded them for a time, and his military merits had been extracted from the Xuan Battalion. Rather than breaking in strangers, why not simply pull the entire Xuan Battalion into the militia currently under preparation?

Zhao Hengyi listened until he was utterly dumbfounded!

So that bastard Chen Yongzhong had gone to Yonggu City back then precisely to seize the Xuan Battalion!